Dodgeball hopeful of 2017 Varsity place after Swansea encounter

One of the Athletic Union’s (AU) youngest clubs, Dodgeball, travelled to Swansea University’s recently built bay campus on 13th April in a precursory event to this week’s 2016 Welsh Varsity.

The club brought ten players to make two teams against Swansea’s three teams of five. A few minor injuries were sustained during the course of the mini tournament, which boasted a good number of spectators and was refereed by Swansea’s social secretary, Emma Price.

The games were played in best-of-three rounds, in a rotation system with the three Swansea and two Cardiff teams all getting to play one another- meaning that for one round Cardiff played against their own players. In the first few games, Swansea won quickly but once Cardiff warmed up victories soon arrived.

The final took place between Cardiff and Swansea’s “A” teams and Swansea had their strategies organised down to a tee- taking out the four men still representing the visitors before finishing off the last woman standing. Nick Wilson, club president and founder, kept morale high, stating that “our dodging game was strong today.”

The tournament was followed by a Last Man Standing game, where it was one against all. When one side became too small, players from the larger side swelled in numbers, and the court gradually became smaller.

It was testament to the quality of Cardiff’s players that the last four men standing were all CUDC members. Sam Rocewicz, coach, pointed to this fact, saying: “We’ve got the players; we’ve got the team- we just need to put time in on the court to become the best Welsh university club.”

Bryn Knight, another Cardiff player, remarked that the match was like the “curtain call of Varsity.” Whilst Dodgeball is not currently a BUCS sport, both clubs hope that if it becomes accepted as one next year, there will also be a dodgeball competition as part of the Welsh Varsity. Other members made light of the fledgling sport’s unorthodoxy, with Cardiff player Kathryn Cribbin joking that Swansea’s victory was a “consolation for when they lose Varsity next week.”

However, these statements were made in jest- as a friendly match, the atmosphere was jovial. Swansea’s well-established team were more than happy to play against the younger CUDC in a light-hearted manner whilst still competing at a high performance level.